Recruitment in 2026: How AI, Automation and ATS Are Shaping Talent Acquisition

In this blog we look at:

• Which TA activities recruiters currently use AI for or are planning to use AI for in the next 12-24 months.
• Strategies recruiters plan to use to achieve hiring success in 2026.
• Importance of finding the right balance between Automation & AI efficiency and Candidate Experience.
• A glimpse into the use of Applicant Tracking Systems in 2026.

Which of the Following Talent Acquisition Activities Do TAs Currently Use AI for, or Are Planning to Use AI for in the Next 12–24 Months?

The UK Candidate Attraction Survey 2026 covers a new area relevant to Talent Acquisition professionals regardless of the sector they’re in. It showcases which Talent Acquisition activities are completed with the use of AI.

The results of this survey will be revealed in the annual Candidate Attraction Report, so watch this space, but for now, here’s a sneak peek of the AI in Talent Acquisition use cases included in this section of the report:

• Candidate sourcing and matching (e.g. automated CV screening, skill matching)
• Job advert optimisation (e.g. AI tools for inclusive or bias-free language)
• Chatbots or virtual assistants for candidate engagement
• Interview scheduling and coordination
• AI-assisted candidate assessment (e.g. AI candidate summaries, video interview analysis, skills testing)
• Predictive analytics for hiring outcomes (e.g. quality of hire, time-to-fill)
• Candidate experience personalisation (e.g. AI-driven job recommendations, tailored communication)
• Talent pooling and nurturing (e.g. automated re-engagement campaigns)
• DE&I monitoring and improvement (e.g. bias detection in recruitment data)
• Workforce planning or talent forecasting
• Counter AI – use AI to recognise applications that have been generated by AI

How Are Recruiters Planning to Succeed in 2026?

The Talent Labs survey results confirm that Talent Acquisition (TA) teams, similar to the findings from last year, are still being asked to do more with less. Typically, due to constraints in capability, resources, or budget, all of which have taken a hit in the current economic climate.

In order to meet their recruitment goals, TA teams are turning to these key strategies:

• Use of AI & Automation tools to drive efficiency and reduce manual effort in sourcing and selection.
• Talent Pooling & Employee Referral programs being leveraged as low-cost sources that help TAs source high quality candidates.
• Investing in Strategic Workforce Planning, allowing TAs to anticipate skills needs and proactively build pipelines, doing more proactive recruitment with fewer resources. Demand Planning/Forecasting was also cited as a priority for 30% of in-house recruitment teams who participated in the UK Candidate Attraction Report 2025 survey.
• Selective Outsourcing of recruitment to scale capacity up or down without adding permanent headcount, though cost considerations mean outsourcing is used sparingly by most organisations.

Automation & AI vs Candidate Experience - How Can Recruiters Strike the Right Balance? 

We enter 2026 with a visible shift in the Talent Acquisition priorities, as seen in the Talent Labs survey results. Talent Acquisition professionals who participated in the survey shared that while Candidate Experience is still a key focus for most teams, it has been overtaken by the need to prioritise Automation & AI. This fits into the current economic climate, where recruiters are asked to do more with less, meaning the search for more efficient ways to fill vacancies is key to succeeding in 2026.

Despite the high focus on Automation & AI, Candidate Experience still remains second in the top priority list, cited by 44% of the Talent Labs survey respondents. According to the findings of Fitzgerald HR, Candidate Experience still needs to be human-led and AI cannot be used for every touchpoint in the recruitment process. The insight reveals: ‘’AI can’t make assessments on an applicant’s motivations for applying for a role, or the nuances behind hiring for cultural ‘adds’ as well as cultural ‘fits’. This is particularly important for those high-stakes roles, where leadership style and presence will have a huge impact on how the new hire interacts with their team.’’

Striking the right balance between efficiency of AI & Automation with creating a human-first candidate experience is likely to play a key role in many recruitment strategies in 2026. This will be critical to get right - Gini Talent’s insight, ‘AI Recruiting Automation in 2026: How to Harness the Upside Without Ignoring the Risks’, shares: ‘’Used well, AI recruiting automation can make hiring faster and smarter; used blindly, it can quietly harden bias in hiring and damage your brand.’’

Use of Applicant Tracking Systems in 2026

Taking a look at the economic climate and strategies TA teams seek to implement to succeed, it’s safe to say that Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) will be fundamental tools in the 2026 recruitment.

Not having an ATS in place could create a challenging and overwhelming landscape for TA professionals. With AI tools used by 53% of job seekers in the UK to help them in their current job search, the application volumes recruiters receive will only grow in volume, making it increasingly challenging to cope without an Applicant Tracking System.

With over 60% of UK workers having previously applied for jobs that they aren’t qualified for, an ATS enables recruiters to automate the CV review process, ranking the CVs from most to least relevant to the vacancy. This enables recruiters to focus on the most suitable candidates, freeing up time to engage and create an exceptional candidate experience.

Findings from G2’s Buyer Behaviour Report and Fosway Group’s Talent Acquisition Realities Report also reveal that to deliver an exceptional candidate experience from application to onboarding, you need the right data and insight to stay ahead in a time of never-ending change. That is where an Applicant Tracking System becomes the backbone of your strategy, as having built in recruitment data and clear visibility over where any hiring bottlenecks appear in the process, enables TAs to take steps to resolve them.